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Brothel funds NZ lad's Olympic dream

Taekwondo hopeful opens 'gentlemen's club'

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A NZ Olympic taekwondo hopeful has decided to relieve his parents of the burden of funding his international bids for sporting glory and has opened a brothel to raise cash for his trip to London 2012.

Logan Campbell, 23, stumped around NZ$150,000 (£58,000) to compete in Beijing,* with mum and dad footing most of the bill. According to the BBC, he "began looking for alternative ways of raising Olympic funding when he realised how difficult it was proving to raise adequate cash to support his training towards a place at the London Olympics".

Inventively, he's cut the ribbon on a 14-room "high-class" establishment - legal in new Zealand since prostitution was decriminalised six years back. To stress he's more respectable businessman than pimp, Campbell told the Sunday Star Times: "When people think of a pimp they think of a guy standing around on a street corner with gold chains. Pimps are more tough-type guys. I'm an owner of an escort agency."

Regarding quite what his dear old ma thought of the whole thing, Campbell explained: "Mum was hesitant but she met the girls, a couple came over to her house and she was sweet as. She realised they were just normal people supporting their kids and stuff."

Campbell hopes to return to Olympic training in 2011 with a war chest of NZ$300,000 after a couple of years full-time pimping,.

However, the Beeb notes it may not be that simple. Team NZ funding manager John Schofield explained to the Sunday Star Times: "Selection takes into account not just performance but also the athlete's ability to serve as an example to the youth of the country." ®

Bootnote

*He was beaten by Taiwan's Sung Yu-Chi, who eventually secured the bronze medal.